Brian Hayes (Dublin South West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I very much take on board the points that have been made by the three Deputies. Where an issue like this arises, there is a responsibility on the HSE to inform local elected public representatives, including Members of this House, to help assuage community concerns. There is nothing as bad as a vacuum, so I hope that the HSE and others will learn lessons from this. They simply cannot go around the place without informing elected representatives, who understandably will take on board queries and concerns from constituents. I hope the HSE will learn lessons from this affair because that information was not provided, albeit through no fault of the Minister. On the contrary, the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, met all the Deputies concerned last week. On foot of her intervention, she made it abundantly clear, both to the Department of Health and the Department of Education and Skills, that the Deputies should be properly informed. In particular, the parents of the children concerned should not be unduly afraid.

This is a unique setting. We have a special school, which is one of a number of such schools around the country. There is also an adult setting and respite services are being provided. Under a number of different expenditure sub-heads, the total expenditure has to be sustained and dealt with properly. As Deputy Doyle said, there are governance issues here which I am sure the HSE and others will work through.

On foot of her representations, the Minister of State, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, wants me to state that a meeting will occur tomorrow morning between the school management and the Department of Education and Skills. I am grateful for this opportunity to reply on her behalf in order to put that information into the public domain. We should not cause undue concern to parents because the service will remain. There may be changes in the funding model, but it is crucially important to get that model back on a sustainable level. In that way, these excellent services can be provided to the young people who use them. This is not just important to the people of County Wicklow, but is also part and parcel of a network of special schools around the country that provides a fantastic service to children with challenging behavioural issues.

See this speech in context